1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electronic stringed musical instrument in which a string vibration detector, called a pickup device, detects vibrations of strings and produces electrical signals corresponding to the detected vibrations, and musical sounds to be produced by musical sound generating means are controlled in response to the produced electrical signals, and more particularly, to a technology for mounting a string supporting unit, used to support one end of each of stretched strings, on a body unit.
2. Description of the Related Art
The following are descriptions of conventional electronic stringed musical instruments of this type, and U.S. related applications.
Disclosed in pending U.S. patent application Nos. 112,780; 184,099; 256,398; and 252,914 (assigned to the assignee of this application) are guitar synthesizers or electronic guitars, which use an electromagnetic type pickup device, a pitch extracting device, and a pitch designating device. The pickup device magnetically detects vibration of each string and produces a pickup signal in response to the detected string vibration. The pitch extracting device extracts a string vibration cycle (i.e., string vibration pitch) from the pickup signal. The pitch designating device is used to designate a pitch corresponding to the extracted string vibration pitch. On account of the use of the pitch extracting device, the guitar synthesizers or electronic guitars of this type are called electronic stringed musical instruments of a pitch-extraction type.
Disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Disclosure No. 63-51395 (assigned to the assignee of this application) is an electronic stringed musical instrument which uses an electromagnetic type pickup device, an envelope detecting device, and a peak measuring device. The pickup device magnetically detects vibration of each string and produces a pickup signal in response to the detected string vibration. The peak detecting device detects an envelope signal from the pickup signal. The peak measuring device is used to measure the peak of each envelope signal. The peak of each envelope signal indicates the strength of a string touch, and the envelope signal is used to control the volume of a musical sound to be produced by musical sound generating means.
Since the control of the production of the musical sounds is triggered by the vibrations of the strings, the aforesaid musical instrument is called an electronic stringed musical instrument of a string-triggered type.
Disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,723,468, moreover, is an electronic stringed musical instrument which uses an electromagnetic type pickup device and a fingering position detecting device. The pickup device magnetically detects vibration of each string. The position detecting device detects a fingering position for each string on a fingerboard by using an ultrasonic waves. A pickup signal produced by the pickup device indicates a state of vibration of each string, and is used to instruct the start and end of production of musical sounds by musical sound generating means, and to control the volume of the produced musical sounds. The instrument of this type is called an electronic stringed musical instrument of an ultrasonic type, on account of the use of ultrasonic waves.
Disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,765,219, furthermore, is an electronic stringed musical instrument of a violin type which uses a pickup device for electromagnetically detecting vibrations of strings and producing pickup signals in response to the detected string vibrations.
Disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,702,141, moreover, is an electronic stringed musical instrument of an optical-pickup type which uses a pickup device for optically detecting string vibrations and producing pickup signals in response to the detected string vibrations.
Disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,658,690, furthermore, is an electronic stringed musical instrument of a Hall-device type which uses a pickup device for detecting string vibrations by means of a combination of a Hall-device and a magnet and producing pickup signals in response to the detected string vibrations.
In order to produce specific musical sounds in response to vibrations of picked strings, in any of the electronic stringed musical instruments of various these types, it is essential to provide a pickup device for detecting the string vibrations produced by a plucking operation as electrical signals and an electric circuit for electrical processing to produce the musical sounds. In the case of a so-called electric guitar or an electronic stringed musical instrument of an electric-guitar type, for example, the electrical signals are directly amplified or processed as required, to be used as a sound source for the production of the specific musical sounds. In the cases of the electronic stringed musical instruments of the aforementioned pitch-extraction type, string-triggered type, or ultrasonic type, the electrical signals are used to control the tone or volume of musical sounds produced by separate musical sound generating means.
In the conventional electronic stringed musical instruments, the pickup device and a circuit substrate constituting the specific electric circuit are arranged around a string supporting member for supporting one end of each string. In this case, the pickup device and the substrate are mounted independently of the supporting member, on the body of the stringed musical instrument. According to this conventional arrangement, therefore, the string supporting member, the pickup device, and the circuit substrate are mounted on the instrument body naturally in separate processes. Thus, the assembly work for the instrument body is troublesome. In this arrangement, moreover, if the pickup device or the circuit substrate, for example, must be replaced due to some trouble, it occasionally is impossible to remove only the damaged element from the instrument body. In most cases, therefore, some other parts on the instrument body must be also removed therefrom for the replacement.
In the case of the stringed musical instrument of the string-triggered type, when a pickup signal is delivered from the pickup device, as mentioned before, a musical sound of any desired tone, selected among various tones preset in the musical sound generating means, is produced in response to the attainment of a predetermined level by the pickup signal. If a string vibration continues over a predetermined period of time after the production of the specific musical sound, the level of the pickup signal following the string vibration exceeds the predetermined level over the predetermined period of time. Thus, an unexpected sound may sometimes be produced against a player's intention. In order to prevent this, the string vibration must be suppressed in a short period of time directly after the string is plucked.
Disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,015,247 is a stringed musical instrument which is provided with a string vibration damping member for damping string vibration in a short period of time after string plucking operation. In this instrument, however, a string supporting unit for supporting strings is formed independently of the damping member. When the supporting unit is fixed to the body of the stringed musical instrument, therefore, the vibration damping member sometimes cannot be properly pressed against the string. In such a case, the damping member cannot fulfill its string vibration damping function.